Pass Rusher With Voice as Big as Game Has Predraft Visit With Packers

The Green Bay Packers took two pass rushers on the third day of last year’s NFL Draft. Barryn Sorrell and Collin Oliver were the team’s fourth and fifth round picks, and the Packers were likely hoping the two could help give a boost to a pass rush that had yet to acquire Micah Parsons.

Could they be on the hunt for another pass rusher? Their most recent ‘30’ visit indicates at least some interest in giving their pass rush another boost.

According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Packers are bringing former Central Michigan pass rusher Michael Heldman in for a visit.

Heldman was a three-star recruit who was overlooked. He mainly received FCS offers until Central Michigan came onto the scene, offering him a scholarship.

He showed gradual improvement each season with the Chippewas, and his performance where he had 16.5 TFLs, and 10.5 sacks on 53 pressure, helped put him on the NFL’s radar.

Heldman followed up an impressive final season at Central Michigan, with a dazzling performance at their pro day. His performance included a 40 inch vertical jump and 4.79 40-yard-dash.

Dane Brugler’s The Beast has him projected to be a seventh round pick. The Packers have two picks in the seventh round as things sit, and could be looking to take a shot on a hyper athletic prospect to add competition to the back of their edge room.

Tough Times Make Tough People

As good of a player as Heldman is, his story might be even better.

Heldman grew up from a modest home without a father in his life. Sometimes, he was left wondering where his next meal might come from, rather than dreaming about the bright lights of playing football on Sundays.

"My dad hasn't been around, you know, for a long time," Heldman told Andy Sneddon of Cmuchippewas.com

"That was his decision. I don't know where he is. When we were younger, he like showed up here or there just to say hi, but I never really got to know him."

"I would say there were a lot of hard things that we went through, but we were blessed to just be in a place, you know, it's not like we were on the streets living in like the slums.

"I really credit my mom so much with all the work she had to go through.”

That work that his mother went through now could pay off by seeing her son reach new heights in his NFL career.

Should he be selected by Green Bay, he’ll have a path to make the roster. The path is narrow, but that’s just the way that Heldman likes it.

He is touted for both his football ability, but also his work ethic.

"He's as talented of a football player as there is," CMU coach Matt Drinkal said,

"Because his talent matches his work ethic, his maturity, and his desire and passion for everything.

"The thing that stands out, maybe the most, about Michael is that I don't know if I've ever met someone that spends every second of their day truly giving themselves away to everyone else. I mean, helping everyone around him. Everything he does, he makes it for someone else and about someone else."

Green Bay’s pass rush will be missing Micah Parsons for at least the first couple games of the 2025 season. Lukas Van Ness is penciled in as a starter currently, but that is about all that is set in stone.

This offseason saw the Packers move on from Rashan Gary via trade, and Kingsley Enagbare via free agency.

Man of Many Talents

Of course if things do not work out to where he is getting snaps at defensive end, perhaps Heldman could be asked to step in for different duties prior to the game.

Heldman was respected in high school for his voice and stage presence. He was asked to sing the Star Spangled Banner before a rivalry game in high school.

"We had just run out of the tunnel," Heldman said. "My pads are tight. I'm like, I can't breathe, so how am I supposed to sing? I sang. It was kind of rough at first, and then it got better. And then I ended up getting like three sacks and had one of the best games, and we beat our rivals."

Heldman now joins Texas Tech’s Romello Height as the only edge rushers who have confirmed to have visited Green Bay through the draft process.

The Packers currently have three edge rushers under contract for 2027. Parsons, Sorrell, and Oliver. Only Parsons at this point is a proven commodity, and a team can never truly have too many pass rushers. That could put them squarely in the hunt for another rusher to add to Jonathan Gannon’s defense.

Packers Predraft Visits

The Packers' trade of Dontayvion Wicks isn't addition by subtraction, but the subtraction could mean addition.

Here's what it means from multiple angles. ⬇️https://t.co/5EWDJIr9Bp
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) April 10, 2026